Step 9: Flying - stable flight

Step 10: Flying - Loop-de-loop and Wingover

Because this is such a stable (and nose-heavy) plane, making it perform tricks takes a bit of doin'. First I fold a set of flaps in series on both w...

I love airplanes. As you are reading this, you probably have at least a little interest in planes as well. And as any kid will tell you, arguably the best kinds of airplanes are of the "paper" variety. They are simple in construction, cheap in materials, and most importantly, a helluva lot of fun. At least, all the ones I ever enjoyed making and flying as a kid were.

Millions of paper airplane designs exist; every kid seems to know a different one. But by far the best paper airplane I have ever flown was taught to me by my dad, who learned it from his dad when he was a kid in the 60's. In fact, my grandpa invented this design (he was a draftsman, an airplane mechanic in WWII and the Korean War, and holds several patents). So I made this sound like my family's secret paper airplane legacy, but we've taught it to tons of people over the decades so it can hardly be called a secret. Now I'm going to teach it to you.

Not the fastest one though, and most of the times if you throw it even a little too hard it goes off balance and either boomerangs back or starts going up and down (sharply) for no reason, like on those rollercoasters.